Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Mark Buehrle throws against the Tampa Bay Rays in the first inning in Dunedin. (REUTERS/Fred Thornhill)

Whether you measure the speed of Mark Buehrle’s fastball with a radar gun, an egg-timer or a calendar, he couldn’t care less.

He’s a man who finesses his way through a lineup, time after time, racking up enough outs to parlay his talent into a dozen consecutive seasons of 200-plus MLB innings. His is an extraordinary record where less is more.

Friday the crafty Blue Jays lefty worked his way through two innings against the Tampa Bay Rays, allowing a run that should have been erased by his defence, and didn’t throw one pitch harder than 83 m.p.h.

“Velocity doesn’t mean much to me,” he said. “The only time I notice (radar gun readings) is if the ball is put in play and I happen to be looking in that area. I’d love to throw 90 to 95 m.p.h. but that’s not me. If I’m getting groundballs and it’s 80 m.p.h. and I’m getting guys out, that’s good enough for me.”